I’m going to work my way backwards on these posts of Africa as I reflect back on the past two weeks that have truly enriched my life. In America we are fed a vision of Africa that is polar opposites of what I experienced here. We think in terms of Third World” and yes in many ways this is true, but in more ways than not the system works better than ours. Tanzanians are extremely proud of their country and their peaceful way of life. They are not so much in a hurry and “Pole Pole” is a common term used here, meaning going at a slower pace. I have to say on my trip, since it was a FAM trip as I was here for business in looking at many hotels and trying to fit in so much more than most people, was far from Pole Pole. On this last day here before I head to Kilimanjaro Airport in a couple hours, I finally have a chance to relax and breathe a bit and reflect on the past few weeks.
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would really make it here someday and then experience this beautiful country. The one thing about being on Safari, you stay at some really nice hotels and eat way too much. There is so much food and at times I had to say “no more please” as they just keep bringing many plates of food. The great thing about being on safari is that you also have an inclusive meal setup, so except for drinks, laundry and souvenirs, you really don’t have to spend any money once you arrive. The staff is always super friendly and they speak excellent English so the language barrier is not a problem.
Tanzanians in general seem very happy and they are curious where you are from and want to know about our cities and how we live. Many asked me to take them back to America. I had once conversation with a gentleman who grew up in Tanzania and he said he once took a trip to New York and told me after a few days his “memory bank was full” he was overloaded by the city. Some days I felt overloaded as well with all that I was seeing.
We saw tens of thousands of Wildebeest, Zebras, hundreds of Elephants and well over 100 lions and so many variety of birds with beautiful colors and songs. As I write this I am having a challenge trying to distill this trip into a few paragraphs so when I make my journey back to Amsterdam, I’ll have a few days there to decompress and write some posts that may make more sense.
I am sad to be leaving Africa and I already miss the Serengeti and NgoroNgoro Crater, where we saw so many beautiful animals in a completely free habitat living life the way they should be. My company Shutter Tours will be working hard to put together a wonderful trip for clients to come and experience a Safari. For many people a trip here will be life changing and I can’t wait to come back and share it with those that join me here again.
